After delaying a vote on a new sanitation code for two months while awaiting the answer to a question, Beaumont City Council finally made its decision. However, when they voted, they were unsure whether their decision would ultimately impact future hurricane recovery.
During a January 24 session, Beaumont City Council received a presentation on the Uniform Plumbing Code from John Mata, senior director of the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials Field Services.
At its next meeting on Jan. 31, the council was due to vote on whether or not to adopt the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code — a departure from the 2015 International Plumbing Code under which the city had been operating.
Finally, when city officials were unsure whether the Uniform Plumbing Code met FEMA requirements, which could affect future disaster recovery grants, the council postponed the vote.
After a two-month search, the city still wasn’t sure. The employees contacted two FEMA officials directly, and although the agency’s guidance to public governments references the International Code directly, it was still unclear whether the Uniform Code would be accepted for grants.
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“(A FEMA memo) states: “If the applicant identifies other locally adopted code specifications or standards that are equivalent or more stringent than the consensus-based code specifications and standards, FEMA requires that the applicant’s design engineer or other qualified person that justifies the hazard resistant design criteria and locally adopted code specifications or standards are equivalent to or more stringent than those approved under this policy,” said Boone.
He said employees contacted FEMA to see exactly what needs to be done to demonstrate compliance, but received no response.
Although they received no clear answer, Beaumont City Council voted 4-3 to adopt the Uniform Plumbing Code at Tuesday’s session.
Several installers and engineers attended both the January 31st and Tuesday sessions and made public comments on the subject.
“That’s what plumbers want, that’s what citizens want. If you go to a plumber and ask them, ‘Hey, what kind of plumbing code do you like?’ They all comply with the Uniform Plumbing Code,” said local plumber Jeremy Pavlich. “Now if you ask the builders, the people who are anti-plumbing licenses and just want to throw up a few houses and let anybody do it, they don’t want strict plumbing laws. They don’t want to get licenses I’m gone.”
During public comment at Tuesday’s meeting, registered professional engineer Sina Nejad said he has been practicing at Beaumont and using the International Code for four years. He said it’s probably one of the most comprehensive codes you can find.
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“I heard there was talk of mixing the codes and using the Uniform Plumbing Code,” Nejad said. “I really haven’t found a reason in my entire life for anyone to take a set of codes that have been adopted by a good number of people around the world to make a head and mix and match different codes.”
Because the city voted to simply update all other building codes and remain on the International Code Council, the city now has mixed and matched codes and is one of only 17 cities in Texas to use the Uniform Plumbing Code through the International.
According to information gathered by city officials, the two codes have many minor differences, such as: B. the pipe size required for showers. However, there are few significant differences, and most differences tend to be more restrictive in the Uniform Code.
Deputy City of Beaumont Building Officer Beau Hansen said the city is now reaching out to planning professionals and contractors in the area to bring the change to their attention.
“There will be a little grace period there that we will be working on with people. We won’t come out lumbering and we won’t close contractors immediately,” he said. “We will be communicating well over the next few months and making sure everyone is aware of any material changes that may affect their trading.”
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